Hello,
I am currently a student of GIS on my second career. I am a retired Navy service member and have some questions regarding surveying. I love nature and hiking. Ideally I think I'd like a job with the USGS as a land surveyor. What I'm wondering is where can I get a job that spends at least 25% of the time outside collecting data? Maybe for topographic maps or borders. I'd prefer to get a federal civil service job that is at lease a GS-11 which is why I'm thinking about trying to get a job with the USGS. Any information you can provide about such a job will be appreciated. I'm basically trying to decide if I want to focus on land surveying or photogrammetry using aircraft with LiDAR or something of that nature. Hope to hear from you if you have any information that will help me. Thanks in advance.
Good luck.
You might find the linked document of interest:
The best source for job postings in the federal civil service of which I am aware is USAJOBS. Current Land Surveyor jobs are: https://www.usajobs.gov/Search?keyword=land+surveyor&Location=&AutoCompleteSelected=&search=Search
A job meeting your grade level preference is here: https://www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/ViewDetails/425291400
Note that it requires either a land surveying license of ability to get one within a specified time.
FWIW, I expect you know that positions at the GS-11 level are not entry level. Who would hire someone at that level to perform data collection?
I never worked for the USGS. I remember listening to a NOAA Assistant Administrator addressing employees of the NGS with the opening line "Thanks to all of you, we appreciate the good work of the USGS."
GeeOddMike, post: 353657, member: 677 wrote: Good luck.
You might find the linked document of interest:
The best source for job postings in the federal civil service of which I am aware is USAJOBS. Current Land Surveyor jobs are: https://www.usajobs.gov/Search?keyword=land+surveyor&Location=&AutoCompleteSelected=&search=Search
A job meeting your grade level preference is here: https://www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/ViewDetails/425291400
Note that it requires either a land surveying license of ability to get one within a specified time.
FWIW, I expect you know that positions at the GS-11 level are not entry level. Who would hire someone at that level to perform data collection?
I never worked for the USGS. I remember listening to a NOAA Assistant Administrator addressing employees of the NGS with the opening line "Thanks to all of you, we appreciate the good work of the USGS."
Noted GeeOddMike. I'd really like to know more about the nature of land surveying instead of pay however.
http://www.blm.gov/pgdata/content/wo/en/prog/more/cadastralsurvey/2009_edition.html
Start here if intending to work in a PLSS state such as Oklahoma. This is a great resource for all areas, but is most directly applicable to the PLSS.
I think that if you really want to spend time outdoors that Land Surveying is going to be a better path.
Holy Cow, post: 353687, member: 50 wrote: http://www.blm.gov/pgdata/content/wo/en/prog/more/cadastralsurvey/2009_edition.html
Start here if intending to work in a PLSS state such as Oklahoma. This is a great resource for all areas, but is most directly applicable to the PLSS.
Thanks Holy Cow. I'll look at it.
Mark Mayer, post: 353688, member: 424 wrote: I think that if you really want to spend time outdoors that Land Surveying is going to be a better path.
Thanks Mark. That's what I was thinking.
GeeOddMike, post: 353657, member: 677 wrote: Good luck.
You might find the linked document of interest:
The best source for job postings in the federal civil service of which I am aware is USAJOBS. Current Land Surveyor jobs are: https://www.usajobs.gov/Search?keyword=land+surveyor&Location=&AutoCompleteSelected=&search=Search
A job meeting your grade level preference is here: https://www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/ViewDetails/425291400
Note that it requires either a land surveying license of ability to get one within a specified time.
FWIW, I expect you know that positions at the GS-11 level are not entry level. Who would hire someone at that level to perform data collection?
I never worked for the USGS. I remember listening to a NOAA Assistant Administrator addressing employees of the NGS with the opening line "Thanks to all of you, we appreciate the good work of the USGS."
I found this pretty quickly on USAJobs. So I know they're out there.
Mark Mayer, post: 353688, member: 424 wrote: I think that if you really want to spend time outdoors that Land Surveying is going to be a better path.
Do know how much an average salary is for a Land Surveyor?
A dollar a day and all they can eat. Or what they are worth, which might be far less.
Seriously, that's a bit like asking what an actor/actress makes and what is the average. For them the average is probably under $1000 per year despite there being the ones with which we are familiar who make many millions. Part of the problem is the need to distinguish between licensed professional land surveyors and the thousands of others who list their occupation as surveyor. Many of the latter category take home more dollars than those of the former category. Doesn't really sound fair, does it?
Soonermapper, post: 353693, member: 10973 wrote: average salary is for a Land Surveyor
Even in Land Surveying it is common to fall into an all or nothing field/office balance. There very much tends to be field guys who are 100% in the field and office guys who are 100% in the office. Entry level situations with better balance exist, but are not the norm.
Even with all your education you would probably enter Land Surveying as a field crew helper. Pay for that would be something under $20/hr. You would not likely be there too long. Perhaps a year. Likely less.
Next step would be Party Chief with pay in the $20-$30/hr range. These jobs are commonly 90%, or more, in the field.
At the top of that range are the office Survey Technicians who often spend 100% of their time at the computer monitor.
Licensed Land Surveyors are in the $60k - $100k range. Even with your education you will need at least a few years experience to qualify.
A licensed land surveyor might make $60,000 to over $100,000 for someone who supervises other land surveyors. A licensed surveyor in his own business would have a much wider range, depending on his business skills. It might take 10 years or so to be able to examine and/or require a degree depending on what state you work in.
An entry-level surveyor may make much less. It is not the highest-paid profession in the world. Most of us like it for the interest.
Getting on with the government will probably require a lot lower entry-level position than what someone like you might expect. The GS-11 level might require working at lower levels in the same field for a specific amount of time. Stat DOTs would probably be the same way.
Good luck. It's a wonderful field of work, but the pay may be a factor.
Mark Mayer, post: 353701, member: 424 wrote: Even in Land Surveying it is common to fall into an all or nothing field/office balance. There very much tends to be field guys who are 100% in the field and office guys who are 100% in the office. Entry level situations with better balance exist, but are not the norm.
Even with all your education you would probably enter Land Surveying as a field crew helper. Pay for that would be something under $20/hr. You would not likely be there too long. Perhaps a year. Likely less.
Next step would be Party Chief with pay in the $20-$30/hr range. These jobs are commonly 90%, or more, in the field.
At the top of that range are the office Survey Technicians who often spend 100% of their time at the computer monitor.
Licensed Land Surveyors are in the $60k - $100k range. Even with your education you will need at least a few years experience to qualify.
Thanks Mark. That is exactly the information I'm looking for. I really appreciate it.
Tom Adams, post: 353704, member: 7285 wrote: A licensed land surveyor might make $60,000 to over $100,000 for someone who supervises other land surveyors. A licensed surveyor in his own business would have a much wider range, depending on his business skills. It might take 10 years or so to be able to examine and/or require a degree depending on what state you work in.
An entry-level surveyor may make much less. It is not the highest-paid profession in the world. Most of us like it for the interest.
Getting on with the government will probably require a lot lower entry-level position than what someone like you might expect. The GS-11 level might require working at lower levels in the same field for a specific amount of time. Stat DOTs would probably be the same way.
Good luck. It's a wonderful field of work, but the pay may be a factor.
Thanks Tom. Luckily I'm retired from the Navy so pay isn't too much of an issue. I'm looking for a job that I love to go to every day more than the pay.
Soonermapper, post: 353709, member: 10973 wrote: Thanks Tom. Luckily I'm retired from the Navy so pay isn't too much of an issue. I'm looking for a job that I love to go to every day more than the pay.
Awesome....I would find a local surveyor who does boundary work if I were in that position. (Actually I kind of am. Maybe I'll follow my own advice). Boundary work is the most interesting and the least pay of all survey work in my opinion.
Tom Adams, post: 353711, member: 7285 wrote: Awesome....I would find a local surveyor who does boundary work if I were in that position. (Actually I kind of am. Maybe I'll follow my own advice). Boundary work is the most interesting and the least pay of all survey work in my opinion.
Cool. I think I'd like that or probably making topo maps. I think that would be a super fun job.
I cannot supply an answer to your post. 🙁
But, as you have seen many others can, Welcome to the most informative and fun site ever for Surveyors.
Soonermapper, post: 353685, member: 10973 wrote: I'd really like to know more about the nature of land surveying....
Then you've come to right place. Like that feller from FL/GA said:
FL/GA PLS., post: 353716, member: 379 wrote: Welcome to the most informative and fun site ever for Surveyors!!!
I hope you have a great day; I know I will!
Dougie
My advice is dive in anywhere you can, work as many different positions as possible gaining as much experience as possible, finding out what you like and don't. The more varied your experience, the more likely you are to be able to eventually find the balance that you're seeking.
